In reply to “Greens” (Posted November 16, 2012 at 9:12 …

In reply to “Greens” (Posted November 16, 2012 at 9:12 pm): You are confused. The Liberals were not in power for over two decades of self-government in the Territory. That was a separate political party known as the Country Liberal Party, or CLP. Unlike the CLP, the Liberals have some quite credible achievements in Indigenous affairs. For example, it was the Liberal Party that drafted and passed the Aboriginal Land Rights Act NT, which is regarded internationally as best practice in the recognition of rights in land held by pre-existing Indigenous groups in circumstances of colonisation and settlement.
It was the Liberal Party that ensured strong Aboriginal sacred areas protection in NT legislation, and required the NT government to provide for the processes of claiming community living areas on pastoral leases, and town camp leases in towns in the NT. The Liberal Party created the ADC and NAC, as well as training and employment programs for people living in remote communities. More recently, it was the Liberal Party which began expanded primary health care funding in remote regions, funded the initial rollout of Opal fuel and expanded youth services, vastly increased Commonwealth housing programs, and moved to intervene with massive emergency resources in an effort at trying to help prevent the further social disintegration of Aboriginal families and communities in remote regions.
On the Labor side, it was ALP governments which established the Aboriginal Land Fund Commission and its successors. Other ALP achievements include the Woodward Royal Commission into Land Rights, funding for Aboriginal Hostels and Indigenous Business Australia, ATSIC, the Deaths in Custody Royal Commission and associated reforms, the Council for Reconciliation, the Stolen Generations enquiry, and funding for many valuable services, such as the Aboriginal community-controlled health, legal and education sectors.
Most importantly, it was Labor which recognised Native Title Rights in legislation, and established a process for settling claims to these rights.
There are a myriad of other achievements in the Indigenous affairs area by both Labor and the Liberals.
It is immature and glib for the Greens to just dismiss the Liberal and Labor efforts as “hopeless”. They were not always perfect, but they have come a long way in the last forty years, and done a lot of good which is too rarely acknowledged. It is very easy to identify shortcomings, but many failed programs had to be tried in order to find out what actually worked for the benefit of the people.
On the other hand, it could well be argued that the approach of the Greens to Indigenous affairs is hopelessly immature and opportunistic, as they continually invest their political capital in emotionally charged issues, without taking care to negotiate beneficial outcomes within the realms of what can be realistically achieved in these situations.

Recent Comments by Bob Durnan

Seniors concessions praised, but questions about tiersFascinating to hear that seniors who were grandfathered will keep their concessions and receive $500.
Would be even more interesting to know what that means.
Exactly what did the grandfathers do to the seniors? Care to tell us, Sue Shearer?

Bottle shop cops ‘security guards, paid for by the taxpayer’Neither Paul McCue nor James Smerk understands the role of the police at the TBLs / POSIs outside the takeaway grog outlets.
They are not there for the purpose of policing the outlets, nor for the purpose of proving security for the benefit of the outlets and their customers, although they do some of that incidentally in the course of their main duties.
The reason that police are there is to prevent the trafficking of alcohol by people who have no legitimate place to drink it, and who are intending to drink it in places where it is illegal to do so, such as Aboriginal lands where communities have asked the Liquor Commission to declare areas dry, or town camp leases which the Federal government has declared dry for the wellbeing of vulnerable residents.
These are the sole reasons that police are stationed outside the off-licence liquor outlets.

Booze report: What the government is likely to do.In response to R Henry on Oct 20th, on who gets the extra markup money?
There is very little brand loyalty to the cheap brands of Chardonnay amongst our dedicated alcohol-drinking punters: They are after the cheapest hit of alcohol for their buck, regardless of its host liquid, not for their next taste of the rank Calabrian / Bortoli products.
Since the vast majority of shoppers generally shift their choice to better value for money when confronted with higher prices (and this happened when Clare Martin knocked the cheapest wines and sherries off the shelves in October 2006: there was a massive shift to beer), there is unlikely to be very much windfall profits via extra markup.
To the extent that there are any windfalls, they are unlikely to be anywhere near commensurate with the decrease in profits that are likely to occur because of the overall impacts of a number of the proposed reforms.
To see if I am correct, keep your ears open for the sounds of the interstate alcohol industry cartels – manufacturers, wholesalers, retailers and their paid public relations reps squealing about the alleged injustice, unfairness and unworkability of these visionary evidence-based reforms.
It is going to be an interesting war, and the outcome will decide whether the NT has any future worth speaking about.

Elferink and Gooda clash over underage marriagePeter, Posted June 30, 2017 at 2:30 pm: some young girls may resist promised marriage more strongly these days, but I doubt whether some are in a position to do so.
It has been authoritatively reported by youth workers in Alice Springs and Tennant Creek in the last few years that rape of young women is rife in these towns.

I’m not kungka, I’m arelheDoes anybody know if the hours when the Arrernte words teaching program is held at the Apmere angkentye-kenhe are available somewhere on the net, or anywhere else?
I thought I had seen it advertised for every Wednesday night at 6pm, but this doesn’t appear to be the case?
I have gone there at this time, found it closed, and no notice or info on the door.
Anybody wanna clarify here?